Sunday, 26 June 2016

Brexit and the European Dream

Friday came as a
shock to me as many in the UK. On Thursday night, I thought ‘Bremain’ had narrowly
won the EU Referendum. There was a niggling feeling in my gut. I woke up on
Friday morning to the profound shock of Brexit. No, it’s more than that. My
heart is torn in two.

Children
of Brexit Divorce

As a linguist, I
have one foot in Britain and the other in Europe. I belong to both. I
understand both. I agree and disagree with both on different issues.
Unfortunately, I have experienced two very bitter divorces; that of my parents
and my own. It is always the children who suffer most in a divorce. So, I would
like to appeal on behalf of the children of the UK and Europe.

Cornered

It is never a good
idea to back people into a corner. A ‘take it or leave it’ approach is like red
rag to a bull. As a pro-European, even my instant reaction to some rhetoric has
been “I’ll leave it, thanks”.

It is easy for the
side that does not budge to blame the other side for all repercussions.
European leaders knew that our Prime Minister was in a difficult situation. I
wonder if they would have conceded more if they could have foreseen the
fallout?

Lawyers

The trouble with
lawyers is that they will not deal with ‘what ifs’. They will only advise after
the event.

Generation
gap

I woke up on
Friday morning to a map of the UK that looked like a civil war. Britain divided
between regions and generations.

Angela Merkel said
that she does not want Brexit to be ‘nasty’. The European Union should note
that the UK’s young people voted to remain in Europe. A nasty divorce will
alienate them.

My 19-year-old son
was disappointed. He went to Denmark last week. He was planning to go to
Berlin, Stockholm and Barcelona this summer. It’s great to travel while young.
It broadens the mind. My elder son is part of a generation that is open to
Europe. He will remain so if the ‘divorce’ is handled with equanimity and an
eye to future ‘rapprochement’. Will Europe restrict his travelling in future?

My 16-year-old son
(who did not have a right to vote) was even more scathing about the election
result. It is wrong to assume that his age group is not politically aware. The
younger generation get their information from different sources to their
parents and grandparents.

Founders’
dream

We are all
different. After the Referendum results the EU’s founder members went into a
huddle. Come again? Younger family members hate being excluded from discussions
in a divorce. It can sow the seeds of future issues - often without foundation.

The founder
members had a dream. I understand that they feel that Britain has slapped them
in the face and spat on their dream. It hurts.

When a family
grows in size you have to amend your dreams. That doesn’t mean that you can’t develop
new dreams. A new reality can turn out better than your original dream - if
only you give it a chance…

A new dream

The European dream
grew out of the chaos of two world wars. Today’s political chaos is an
opportunity to create a new European dream for generations to come.